West Haven Man Sentenced to 57 Months in Federal Prison for Trafficking Cocaine

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that, ALBERT RIVERA, 32, of Coleman Street, West Haven, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in Bridgeport to 57 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing cocaine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, RIVERA is one of 26 individuals charged as a result of an FBI Safe Streets Task Force investigation into a New Haven-area narcotics trafficking organization. The investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps that recorded defendants on numerous occasions arranging the purchase and distribution of kilograms of cocaine.

The investigation revealed that RIVERA obtained cocaine from another member of the conspiracy, and then sold the cocaine, for profit, to other wholesale drug distributors.

On November 14, 2011, RIVERA pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.

This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, which includes officers from the Ansonia, Hamden, New Haven, and Milford Police Departments, as well as the State of Connecticut Department of Correction. The West Haven Police Department has also provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

U.S. Attorney Fein also recognized the assistance of the New Haven Police Department’s Tactical Narcotics Unit and its Street Interdiction Unit for their assistance in making the arrests and seizures in this case.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael E. Runowicz.